No great movement designed to change the world can bear to be laughed at or belittled. Mockery is a rust that corrodes all it touches.
Source: Kostka, in The Joke, pt. 6, ch. 18 (1967; tr. 1982).
-- Milan Kundera, (Apr 1 1929-____), Czech novelist, playwright, poet; He wrote various works combining erotic comedy with political criticism.